Juveniles,
or minors, accused of committing crimes are treated significantly differently
than their adult counterparts. In order
to cope with younger offenders, each state has specific procedures for handling
cases of juvenile offenders. In theory,
juvenile courts seeks to rehabilitate and deter youthful offenders from
criminal activity, and in turn, a wide variety of guidelines, programs, and
sentences are handed down to juvenile offenders, which vary state by
state. As a guideline, children under
the age of fourteen cannot be charged with a crime unless the prosecutor can
prove than mens rea, or guilty intent, was formed in the child’s mind. Typically, children under a certain age,
typically ten to twelve, are not viable candidates for the juvenile justice
system and are dealt with via their parents or guardians.

Rights of
Juveniles Accused of Crimes

Juveniles
accused of crimes that have been referred to the juvenile justice system follow
a similar procedure, regardless of their jurisdiction. Once a case is referred by law enforcement to
the juvenile justice department, a prosecutor or juvenile intake officer will
decide:

To
dismiss the charges against a juvenile

To
handle the juvenile case informally

To
petition the case, or file formal charges

Formally
filing charges places a case on the schedule of the juvenile courts to be heard
later. Following this, either a minor
will be arraigned and charged as a minor or the case will be turned over to the
adult court system. If kept in the
juvenile justice system, a judge will likely retain jurisdiction over the case,
however, community programs and other juvenile counseling and outreach programs
are attended by the youthful offender as a judge withholds judgment on their
case. Additionally, informal arrangements to pay restitution, meet certain
school requirements, and receive certain psychiatric help all may be required
by a juvenile judge.

More
recently, juveniles have been afforded more legal rights similar to those
enjoyed by their adult counterparts. For
example, law enforcement cannot search or detain juveniles without probable
cause, however, a probation officer, school official, or parent may legally do
so. Juvenile offenders are not bailed
out per se, but are often released to the care of their parents, or if not to
their parents, must wait to appear before a juvenile court judge, which is
known as preadjudiciation detention.

Juvenile Rights
to Counsel

Juveniles
do have a right to counsel, and if they cannot afford it, they must be provided
counsel. Additionally, minors are
typically afforded the right to call for legal representation, which may be
either obtained via their parents or directly speaking with a public
defender. The right to counsel is for
the individual minor and not their family.
Therefore, virtually all minors are eligible for court-appointed
counsel. Additionally, the
attorney-client privilege applies to communications between a minor and their
attorney, but typically, parents are involved in the decision making process.

Other
constitutionally protected rights of minors that the courts have upheld
include:

Fifth
amendment rights preventing self-incrimination

Rights
to confront and cross-examine witnesses

Right
to notice of the charges

In
a small number of states, juveniles are afforded the opportunity to a trial by
jury

Trying a Minor
as an Adult

More
often than not, punishments meted out by the adult court system are more
serious. Therefore, any sentencing will
be served in an adult incarceration facility.
However, minors charged as adults will receive the same legal rights as
an adult would. Minors can be changed as
adults, if:

In
the judge’s opinion, the minor is not going to benefit from juvenile
rehabilitation

Depending
on the state, an individual age 13 to 16 may automatically be eligible for
adult court

State
automatic transfer laws mandate the minor is older enough and has committed an
offense that must be tried in adult court

Typically,
most individuals will seek to be tried as a minor, which gives them much more
of an opportunity to avoid hard time, but also, potentially seal and expunge
their records later.

Juvenile
Criminal Case Sentencing

Sentencing
and punishments for juveniles found responsible for crimes tends to prove
rather lenient, even in light of major damages.
Typically, the least punishment a juvenile can face will be a verbal
warning. Elevating punishments may include
paying restitution, mandatory counseling, electronic monitoring, or community
service punishments. If warranted,
juveniles found committing a crime might be confined per the order of a
judge. The levels of confine vary
according to the severity of the crime, however, some common methods of
confining offending juveniles, include:

Placement
in a secured facility, ranging from minimum to maximum security

Placement
in an adult jail or prison among the adult general population

Juvenile Records
after Reaching Adulthood

A juvenile court record records all the
interactions the juvenile court system has had with an individual, including
their juvenile arrest record. Sealing,
or expunging, these records upon becoming an adult is beneficial for
individuals, who may otherwise suffer detrimentally from having a criminal
record. Juveniles typically must
formally request that their records be sealed via a petition to the juvenile
court clerk. Eligibility for record
sealing is done a case-by-case basis, however, the age of eighteen, unless
otherwise noted, is typically the appropriate time.